Bowling ball with replaceable grip and adjustable weight



p 1968 J. P. FABANICH 3,400,929

BOWLING BALL WITH REPLACEABLE GRIP AND ADJUSTABLE WEIGHT Filed Oct. 19, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 /6'-SOCKET 46-RE5/LIENT PLY 48 42\RE$ILIENT PLY John P Fawn/m RESILIENT HARD INVENTOR. PLY SHELL Sept. 10, 1968 J. P. FABANICH 3,400,929

BOWLING BALL WITH REPLACEABLE' GRIP AND ADJUSTABLE WEIGHT Filed on. 19, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Medium Curve 45 Fig.5

John R F abanic/r INI L'NTOR.

BY @Mm Lo rge Curve WW EM.

name

United States Patent 3,400,929 BOWLING BALL WITH REPLACEABLE GRIP AND ADJUSTABLE WEIGHT John P. Fabanich, 4301 Colorado Ave., Lorain, Ohio 44054 Filed Oct. 19, 1965, Ser. No. 497,750 6 Claims. (Cl. 27363) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The ball disclosed is convertible. It comprises a base unit having a solid hemispherical bottom portion and a part-spherical top portion. The recessed portion of the top side of the bottom portion is provided with an upwardly opening socket. A removable insert embodies a main ball weight having a complemental weight embedded therein. This ball-like insert can be set relative to a vertical centerline to impart to the overall bowling ball a positive hook or curve of the degree desired. The grip unit has a depending cylindrical component screwed into a cylindrical part of the recess and providing joining means for the base and grip units, respectively, and clamping means for the shiftable insert. This weighted insert or converter can range from one-quarter to seven pounds, more or less.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in a composite bowling ball; that is, a ball which, broadly defined, comprises a solid spheroidal base unit which constitutes the ball proper, a complemental unit with prescribed fingerholes constituting a self-contained grip and mounted atop and carried by the base unit, and an applicable and removable weighted insert which is precision-fitted and clampingly bound in sockets provided therefor between confronting surfaces of said base and grip units.

Reference to my prior patent will reveal that it, like the present invention, pertains to a bowling ball wherein the attachable grip unit is made to order and is accordingly adapted to the requirements of the particular user thereof. The maximum weight of a regular bowling ball (American Bowling Congress Standards and Specifications) is 16 pounds. The ball in my prior patent and also the ball herein revealed make it feasible and practical to provide a bowler with a convertible ball which is an innovation in that the replaceable grip is optionally changeable and the insertable weight is selectively variable. The user can assemble the several component parts on the spot, so to speak, and have at his disposal a readyto-use ball which ranges in weight anywhere between eight to sixteen pounds. To the ends desired, the weight means, which is sandwiched and held between the base unit and base-capping grip unit, is secluded in oriented and conformable pocketing sockets provided therefor and the mass or load thereof ranges from a fraction of a pound to seven or eight pounds contingent on the trial-and-error needs of the bowler.

In my prior patent the body or base unit is characterized by a solid one-piece bottom portion having a complemental top portion. The upper or top part of this bottom portion is provided at its axial center with an upwardly opening semispherical socket. A spherical or balllike weight (of predetermined selectively usable mass) has its lower half-portion fitted conformingly into said socket with its upper half-portion exposed and projecting to a plane above the top of said socket. That portion of the above-named body portion which encompasses and surrounds the upper exposed half-portion of the weight is formed with an encircling conical cavity. A solid onepiece spherical-conic segment defines the grip unit and has a prescribed conical bottom side or surface conformingly fitted into and wholly filling said conical cavity and has firm mating and direct abutting contact with the oriented surfaces of the cavity. The conical bottom is provided with a semispherical socket like and coordinated with the firstmentioned socket and it seats and retains the upper semispherical half-portion of the ball weight. Means is provided for removably securing the grip unit to the base unit and for clampingly sandwiching and retaining the insertable and removable ball weight therebetween with all the mating surfaces securely joined together.

One objective of the present advance in the art is to dispense with the axial bore or passage in the ball weight and the upstanding screw-threaded weight. positioning stud and anchoring means therefor. To the ends desired, the improved ball weight or insert is no longer anchored and is accordingly readily insertable, removable and adjustable, being thus unique in construction, provides a bowling ball which will appeal to the manufacturing requirements of manufacturers, will better serve the needs of users, and the novel purposes for which the over-all improved ball is expressly adapted.

The fact that the ball insert has capability of adjustment makes possible and practical the utilization of an insert whose body portion is of uniform weight and becomes a main or primary weight and whose top portion or surface is recessed and loaded with an addenda, a two ounce top weight (serving as a secondary or ancillary weight) which is fused or otherwise integrated. Accordingly, this two-part ball weight can be rotated, shifted or otherwise bodily cradled and adjusted to different positions, whereby to give the bowler a chance to achieve varying results ranging from a straight ball to a positive hook or curve of almost any degree or extent desired.

Stated otherwise, the above construction provides for maneuverability of the ball weight needed in order to locate and spot the built-in two-ounce weight so that the bowler has a reliable and significant choice when desiring to throw a straight ball, hook, or curve, as the case may be. It follows that the bowler is enabled to set the secondary or auxiliary weight to a predetermined setting relative to the vertical centerline of the ball. Once he determines upon his setting, he can assemble the ball for a prescribed alley or, if desired, apply epoxy cement, then assemble for a personally set permanent ball. On the other hand, by not using cement or like media between the base and grip units, the ball can be repeatedly adjusted as desired to varying alley conditions, thus providing a convertible bowling ball.

A. further and equally significant improvement resides in providing an adjustable two-part weight which is novel in that it is of laminated form, that is, embodies a hard center or core coated with a thin ply or lamination of softer slightly resilient material, an outer hard spherical shell exteriorly covered or coated with a like ply or film of soft material, and an intervening smaller hard shell encompassing the covered core and its-elf coated with a ply or lamination of soft material interposed between itself and said outer shell. With this composite construction, the assembled ball achieves a sequential series of progressively reacting impacts after the initial impact on the head pin. This unique repeat-action impact on the head pin or pocket assures a more accurate impact result, reliable straight line of travel and smooth functioning follow through results.

The concept is further improved in that the sloping annulus or ledge-like surface existing at the top of the recess or cavity in the base unit is provided at a median portion with an endless annular groove or channel which defines and provides a keyway for a coordinating embossed rib on the bottom side of the grip unit so that when the latter unit is screwed into a female thread provided therefor in the wall of the lower part of the cavity a keyed joint exists. This feature greatly strengthens the coaction between the units and guards against relative displacement thereof. Consequently, this scientifically improved ball will give the bowler greater initial impact, better reactive impact, reliable accuracy, makes for easier handling, and results in greater pin fall than prior art bowling balls.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying illustrative, but not restrictive, drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of the improved readyto-use bowling ball.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view taken on the section line 22 of FIG. 1 with the composite weighted ball or insert appearing in elevation.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view on line 3-3 of FIG. 2 showing the preferred construction of the laminated insert or weight.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing all three components or parts.

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic showing of five balls (all the same in construction) and illustrating how the ball weight can be manually maneuvered and adjusted for varying bowling results.

FIG. 6 is a view like FIG. 2 (smaller scale) with a compensating weight embedded in the grip unit.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 4, it will be noted that the substantially spheroidal recessed base unit, the ball proper, is denoted by the numeral 8, that the readily applicable and removable or replaceable grip unit is denoted generally at 10, that the manually insertable and adjustable spherical or ball-like weighted insert is denoted at 12.

The base unit 8 is of solid construction and the hemispherical bottom portion 13 has the usual convex exterior surface and the companion or complemental part-spherical top portion denoted generally at 14. The top side of the bottom portion is provided (FIG. 2) at its axial center with an upwardly opening semispherical socket 16, the bottom of which is uninterruptedly smooth. That portion of the part projecting above the open top of the socket 16 is recessed to provide a cavity characterized by a cylindrical recess portion 18 encircling and spaced from the socket and communicating with an outwardly and upwardly flaring conical portion 20 defining an abutment and provided midway between its inner and outer marginal limits with an endless annular groove 22 providing a keyway. The upstanding or vertical wall of the cylindrical part is provided with a female thread 24. The readily applicable, removable and manually adjustable spherical weighted insert 12 has its lower semispherical half-portion seated in the socket 16. The upper half portion projects into and above the concentrically encircling recess 18, it being noted that this insert (to be described later in detail) is solid and in practice weighs from a fraction of a pound to approximately seven or eight pounds as the case may be. This weighted insert is centered and clampingly held in place by the aforementioned cavity closing and covering member, more specifically, the replaceable grip unit 10. The grip unit is also of solid construction and is preferably of one-piece spherical-conic segmental form and has a conventional outer peripheral convex surface 26 oriented and mated with the outer peripheral surface 13 of the base unit 8. It is a custom made component part and is provided with suitably bored and positioned finger-holes 28 (FIG. 1). The bottom side of this attachable and detachable grip unit 10 is designed and conformingly fitted into and wholly fills the cavity or recess with prescribed surfaces in direct abutting engagement with the cooperatively coordinating surfaces of the cavity or recess. This grip unit embodies a depending cylindrical axial plug portion 30 which is plugged fittingly into the cylindrical pocket or recess 18 and is provided on its circumferential surface with an embossed rib 32 providing a male thread screwed into the female thread 24 to provide the desired screwthreaded connection between the parts or units 8 and 10. The bottom side of the grip unit is also provided with a conical surface 34 mated with the corresponding surface 20 and bound thereagainst in the manner illustrated in FIG. 2. This surface 34 is also provided midway between its inner and outer marginal portion with a depending endless rib 36 providing a key which is seatingly keyed in the aforementioned keyway 22 so as to stabilize the jointed connection between the base and grip units. The axial underneath side of the plug portion 30 is provided with a semispherical socket 38 which is aligned and cooperatively oriented with the first-named socket 16, these sockets conjointly providing an over-all spherical pocket encompassing and retaining the aforementioned ball weight or insert 12 in place in the manner shown.

It will be noted that the spherical insert or weight 12 comprises a main ball weight of predetermined size and mass which is provided at the top of its peripheral surface with a relatively small integrated ancillary weight which can be selectively shifted, adjusted and set relative to the vertical centerline of the overall ball in order to give the ball a positive hook or curve of almost any degree desired by the bowler. This particular construction is shown in FIG. 3 to which reference will now be made. This ball insert is unique in that it is provided at its axial center with a hard substantially incompressible core 40 encompassed or covered by a thin ply of compressibly resilient relatively soft material 42. The outer hard material hollow or spherical shell 44 is exteriorly coated with a like thin ply of corresponding compressibly resilient or soft material 46. The intervening smaller hard material shell 48 which encompasses the covered core is also covered or coated with a thin ply or lamination of soft material 50 interposed between itself and the interior of the outer shell whereby impact on the head pin assures accurate impact, straight line of travel and good accompanying follow-through results. More important, the upper peripheral portion of the weight is recessed and provided with a fused or otherwise intergrated auxiliary weight 52 which ordinarily is approximately two ounces in weight. Therefore, the over-all insert is of laminated construction and the major part constitutes the main weight and the embedded two ounce weight 52 constitutes the ancillary or auxiliary weight, the latter being covered by the outer lamination 46. By adjusting or rotating the over-all two-part insert or weight to different positions, as shown in FIG. 5, the overall bowling ball is conditioned for a positive hook or curve of almost and degree desired. This construction provides the maneuverability needed for the weight and for the location of the two ounce top weight that gives the proper adjustment for the desired straight ball, hook or curve. A bowler can set the two ounce top weight to a setting relative to the centerline of the ball. Once he gets his setting he can assemble ball for a certain alley or add epoxy cement (not shown) then assemble for a personally set and assembled permanent ball. By not using the epoxy cement the ball can be selectively adjusted to any alley condition. The applicable and removable as well as replaceable grip unit permits the desired access to be had to the recess or cavity means and the ball weight means as is seemingly evident.

It is submitted that the five diagrammatic views shown in FIG. 5 with brief legends will serve to show how the adjustable weight is variable between 0 to 45 in keep ing with the result desired. It follows that this novelly constructed composite ball is capable of providing the desired initial impact, greater reactive impact, more accuracy, easier handling and self-gratifying pin fall results.

The ball proper, that is, the base and grip units considered as an entity, can be manufactured to aggregate a given over-all weight. The weighted insert or converter may range from one-quarter to seven pounds and can be readily placed in its semispherical sockets 16 and 38 (or over-all spherical pocket). Hence, for a weight change the bowler can purchase and install the insert desired. The grip can be drilled to the character desired. The owner need carry, if desired, only the grip unit. The insertable and changeable weights and base units may be stored for selective use as parts and equipment of a bowling alley or establishment.

This ball is ideal for members of a family. All that is required are the individual grips and a selection of inserts or weights. In fact, a professional bowler, if practicing with a sixteen pound ball can, after a few hours dismantle his bail, and switch over to one of lighter weight and minimize fatigue. This ball can be adjusted to comply, if necessary, to precise ABC specifications. The bowler need only to remove one grip and replace with an alternating grip (or grips) in a matter of seconds and be ready to bowl again. Accordingly, the user of this ball can adapt it to his personal needs and requirements and become a better and satisfied bowler.

With reference now to FIG. 6, it will be seen that the ball here shown is the same as that already described. Accordingly, the same reference numerals are employed here and the only difference is the utilization of an embedded balance compensating (precisely proportioned) weight 54 in the upper body portion of the grip unit. The weight range of the weight 54 will vary from one (1) to three (3) ounces depending on the size and type of the finger holes required by the bowler. If the bowler wants a semi or full fingertip drilling the weight 54 will range from one (1) to two (2) ounces. If he wants a conventional grip, the weight 54 will range from two (2) to three (3) ounces. In any event the weight 54 is permanently embodied in the top segment of the ball as clearly shown in FIG. 6. With reference to FIG. 2 on the one hand and compared with FIG. 6 on the other, it will be clear that the center weight 12 can be right on the centerline of the ball or above the centerline. If the center weight is above the centerline of the ball, the top weight 54 would not be required as is obvious. It is reiterated therefore that basically FIG. 2 displays one embodiment and that FIG. 6 illustrates the other wherein the three (3) ounce top weight is shown. It is further evident that the embedding of varied weights 54 in the grip serves to give the bowler a more accurate overall weight after portions, for example the portions 28, are drilled out to provide for desired finger hole drilling.

It is submitted that a careful consideration of the specification and drawing will enable the reader to obtain a clear and comprehensive understanding of the subject matter of the invention, features and advantages and mode of use. Accordingly, a more extended description is thought to be unnecessary.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A bowling ball comprising, in combination, a base unit having a conventional convex outer peripheral surface and constituting the ball proper and embodying a solid hemispherical bottom portion and a complemental part-spherical top portion, the top side of said bottom portion being provided at its axial center with anupwardly opening semispherical socket with an uninterruptedly smooth bottom, a manually applicable, removable and adjustable spherical weighted insert, said insert being wholly solid, free of any passages therethrough, and having its lower semispherical half-portion fitting conformingly and adjustably into and wholly filling said socket and its upper semispherical half-portion projecting to a plane above the top of said socket, that part of said part-spherical top portion projecting above and encircling the upper half-portion of said insert being recessed and providing a cavity, a solid one-piece sphericalconic segment having a conventional outer peripheral convex surface oriented and mated with the outer peripheral surface of said base unit, having fingerholes and constituting a replaceable grip unit, and also having a bottom side designed and conformingly fitted into and wholly filling said cavity with its prescribed surfaces in direct abutting engagement with cooperatively coordinating surfaces of said cavity, said bottom side being provided at its axial center with a downwardly opening semispherical socket aligned and cooperatively oriented with said firstnamed socket and receiving and conformingly enclosing the upper semispherical half-portion of said insert, and means separately joining said base unit and grip unit to each other and clampingly positioning and holding said insert in a given adjusted position in the pocket provided therefor by said coacting sockets.

2. The ball defined in and according to claim 1, and wherein said cavity has a centralized cylindrical lower component portion with a vertical wall spaced radially from and concentrically encircling said firstnamed socket and projecting portion of said insert and an upper conical planar ledge portion concentrically encircling said lower cylindrical portion and having a median endless groove constituting and providing a keyway, the bottom side of said grip unit embodying a depending cylindrical axial component plugged telescopingly into and filling said cylindrical lower portion, the latter having a female thread, and the periphery of said plugged component having a male thread screwed into said female thread and constituting the aforementioned joining and clamping means, said bottom side also having a conical surface mated with and screwed down and bound atop said ledge and said surface having an endless annular outstanding rib providing a key and seatingl y keyed in said keyway, whereby to stabilize the jointed connection between said base and grip units.

3. The structure defined in claim 2, and wherein said spherical insert comprises a composite weight characterized by a main ball weight of predetermined diameter, density and mass and provided at the top of its peripheral surface with an integrally embedded relatively small complemental integrated ancillary weight significantly smaller than said main ball weight but of such a weight value that when selectively shifted in conjunction with said main hall weight, position and set relative to the vertical centerline of the over-all bowling ball it will give said ball a positive hook or curve of almost any degree desired by the bowler.

4. The structure according to claim 1, and wherein said spherical insert embodies a ball-like hard center core completely coated with a thin uniform ply of soft slightly resilient material, a concentric outer hard-material spherical shell exteriorly coated with a like thin ply of soft material, and an intervening smaller hard-material shell encompassing the covered core and itself coated with a thin ply of soft material interposed between itself and said outer shell, whereby the impact on the head pin assures accurate impact, straight line of travel and a good accompanying follow through result.

5. The structure defined in claim 1, and wherein said spherical insert comprises a composite weight characterized by a main ball weight of predetermined diameter, density and mass and provided at the top of its peripheral surface with an embedded relatively small complemental ancillary weight significantly smaller than said main ball weight but of such a weight value that when selectively shifted in conjunction with said main ball weight, located and set relative to the vertical centerline of the over-all bowling ball it will give said ball a positive hook or curve of almost any degree desired by the bowler.

6. The structure defined in and according to claim 1 and wherein said top segment is provided in a peripheral surface portion thereof with a plurality of drilled finger holes opening at outer ends through said peripheral surface and providing grip means and, in combination, a

8 compensating weight embedded in said segment, said weight being of prescribed density and mass to provide for over-all balance and distributive weight and compensate for the portions of the segment removed as a result of drilling the requisite finger holes.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 531,103 12/1894 Dokkenwadel 273-63 3,212,781 10/1965 Fabanich 27363 3,256,018 6/1966 Baggenstoss.

FOREIGN PATENTS 26,401 1913 Great Britain.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner.

GEORGE J. MARLO, Assistant Examiner. 

